The Snake and the Cricket
by AltheaGray
Summary: Infront of a pub stands an oddball little girl. She claims her home & family are gone & she has no where to go. She soon finds herself growing up in this pub. As people gossip about her she learns that an old man understands her power is great and sending her to Hogwarts is just as important as Harry Potter himself. The future lies in the hands of the young.


_So I haven't posted a Fanfiction in a long time. This is actually an older one I started a long time ago. The direction it was suppose to go seems silly now. I was younger at the time. I'm not sure what I will do with this honestly. I might not do anything with this. I wanted to post it only for my selfishness. I've always liked what I wrote with this story, little as it might be, and wish to show it off. And I want to see what others think of it. Critique me. Give me ideas on what this can turn into. I'll comment more at the end, explaining things a bit._

The Snake and the Cricket

By: Katlyn Scott

Prologue:

It was raining in London. Down the street of Stoney Street two forms appeared in long robes. The forms were men, one was old - though he did seem to have a young soul for he walked with a slight skip and a faint smile - and had a long beard. The other man was younger and unpleasant with his greasy hair and long nose. The fact that the younger man seemed more serious –with his mean looking frown and his eyebrows that were together in concentration (or maybe because he was just a grumpy and sad soul) – than the older man made him seem even more unpleasant.

They talked with each other with great importance as they continued down the street -getting soaked by the hardened rain, though they seemed not to care - toward a pub in between a 'normal' bookshop and record store. This particular pub was different from the other ones around it. This pub had an older look of architect, though the 'normal' people around missed and did not acknowledge it's old and fine architecture. For they could not see. Their minds were to far gone and full of unimportant things for them to notice what was right in front of them. For those who did notice the pub, well, lets just say they were far from 'normal' as normal got. Oddballs off every kind entered here to talk with old friends and drink oddball drinks and and eat oddball food.

One girl, a girl about seven years of age stood out in front of the pub. She was an oddball too. Though, she did not know this. Her bright green eyes were wide and her brown -red tinged- hair and clothes were soaked in the water that fell from the deep blue-gray sky. A stuffed bear leg was in her left hand. His name was Mudd. Two d's not one, as the child always made sure people understood. She named him that because his fur was brown. As simple as that. The poor bear's head was dirty and wet from being dragged. On her right shoulder was a bag almost the same size of her. The bag rested on her tiny waist, the upper part of her body was diagonal to the left: she was trying her best to maintain the weight of her bag. She was staring up at the front of the pub, appreciating the architecture. The 'normal' people took no notice of even the little girl.

The robed men were also oddballs. So they did take notice of the pub. And the girl. The younger man was speaking low with the older man with a note of frustration in his voice. The older man put his hand up to silence the younger man and said something in a reassuring voice, but the younger man did not listen and continued his whispered rampage. Finally, the older man just did not want to listen to the younger man anymore. He wanted to take notice of the girl. Which he did. He crouched down to the right of her, his beard sploshing into a puddle. The younger man's face turned angry. His lip went up in a sneer, however he did shut up and stood waiting for the older one.

"What is your name little one?" the old man asked.

The girl kept her eyes locked on the structure in front of her, "I'm Alice."

"Where's your parents,Alice?"

She said nothing. After a few seconds she turned her head to look at the old man.

"Are you Santa Clause?", she asked-looking at his beard- with hope in her voice but, the man did not lie to her.

"No, I am not."

She looked back at the pub with a dramatic sigh that did not fit her seven year old form. After another few seconds she looked quickly back at the man.

"Do you know Santa Clause?" she asked.

"Why do you wish to know?"

"I want something for Christmas. I want a yellow kitty cat. My gray one died."

"Hmm," he said, and nodded. "Why don't you come inside?"

The older man stood. He opened the door and held it opened for the girl. Alice looked behind her and noticed the younger man. She dropped her things in the puddled fulled sidewalk and opened her bag. Inside were some clothes, a few books, shampoo, and a crushed and dying flower that she took out. She turned and held it up to the younger man. The man looked down at her with a blank face. Then, slowly he took the flower from her hand and stared at the child. He seemed to be noticing every last detail of the little girl. After that, he said in a low voice, "Why give me this?"

Alice smiled for the first time and said, "'Cause you looked really sad. So I thought a flower would make you feel better."

She picked up her things and went inside. The younger man stuffed the flower inside his robe. The younger and then the older man fallowed.

When they all sat at the table, Alice spoke no more. Not even when she was spoken to. She was busy looking at all the other oddballs. So the older man fed her and spoke with the other. Then, he stood up and left them awhile. When he returned, he had a man with him.

"Alice, this is Tom. He runs this pub. He is going to help you find your parents and take you home. I must go.."

"There's no need for that." Alice's voice lost its innocence. She was no more a little girl but an older matured girl.

"My parents are dead and my home destroyed. There's nothing to go back too."

The old man stared at the girl in surprise. The younger man had stopped his impatient thumping of his fingers with the table and also looked at the girl in surprise. Tom took the child's hand.

"Then I guess I'll be taking care of you now."

Alice smiled and her child voice returned.

"Okay!"

She jumped out of her chair and began to gather her things.

"Are you sure about this Tom?" the older man asked the bartender.

"Yeah, I've wanted a daughter of my own, remember? I'll take you upstairs." Tom told Alice in a reassuring voice.

"What do I call you?" she said, looking back at the old man.

"You can call me Albus."

"okey dokey." she said happily, and skipped away with Tom.

Albus sat in his seat and finished his conversation with the other man. Afterward, they stood and left the pub. The rain had stopped, but the clouds remained intacted with the sky. The smell of rain hit the mens' noses when they stepped out onto the 'normal' street. Though, no 'normal' people took notice of them.

"I trust you understand Severus." said Albus, speaking of their previous conversation.

"Unfortunately." the other man replied.

"Then I'm off." A large ripping sound then a _crack_ was made as Albus disappeared to who knows where. But, of course, no 'normal' person noticed.

Severus stood there for a few seconds and then, pulled out the flower the child had given him. He deeply stared at it. He dropped it to the puddled cement ground and with a flip of his robe, stormed off with an annoyed look upon his face.

Later on, Alice, would pick the flower back up and put it in a pot the owner of the pub had given her and she would watch the flower unwrinkle, gain it's color back, and bloom in a matter of seconds. Like magic. She was an oddball after all.

"Lily flower's are so pretty." she would say.

_Originally, this was a love story. That an't about to happen now. lol. Alice was suppose to grow a bit before she could ever have the chance to go to Hogwarts. Tom kept the chance from her because he was scared. Scared of her powers. She grew up in the pub and even serves in the pub. People in the pub gossip about her regularly and often rumors spread that she might one day become a dark wizard as bad as He Who Must Not Be Named. She taught herself how to play the Violin. Hence "the cricket" name in the title. Dumbledore insists Alice be taught at Hogwarts. so she starts her years late. idk how I was gonna do this part. I believe she was gonna be 14 at the time she started. she has a nack for potions and herbology. and waaaay later in the story I even was gonna make her a doctor as well as an Aorua. This was suppose to be during the years of Harry Potter. but im not so sure anymore. Anyways its suppose to revolve around her and her relationship with Snape. And I still want it to. but things should be different. I need ideas because she isn't a very developed character and the story I originally had is now childish and kinda too much. Also I have terrible spelling. So review and tell me what you think of my ideas and prologue and such._

_Thank You!_


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